The Power of Journaling
How and Why I Started Journaling:
I’ve been traveling extensively through Europe since 2002. As a person who, earlier had only been outside of the United States, once to Mexico, I hadn’t experienced the differences of many other cultures and I wanted to remember everything about my experiences during my trips abroad.
During that time, I wasn’t photographing much. I sold all my cameras and most everything that I had in order to facilitate a move from the United States to Europe which I did in 2003. Ironically on the plane I struck up a conversation with an older gentleman who told me that he had been journaling for over fifty-five years. He told me he had over two hundred books just waiting for someone to find when he died. I didn’t see the allure of such a thing right way, but he kept telling me about his extensive travels and I was intrigued.
Some years later I started doing the same thing and I bought a medium format camera which I lugged around until I got into using a Leica for traveling. Not using any fancy writing instruments or expensive paper but anything I could find that I could bring with me wherever I went. Whenever I went somewhere, even as close as the next town over, I wrote about the things that interested me and ensured that I recalled how I felt about them.
Somewhere in Rome, Italy, enjoying a cappuccino while recording some thoughts. Pen is a Montblanc Heritage edition “Serpent Clip” I no longer own.
Digital Journaling and the Return to Analogue:
After many years I had to quit journaling all together for two main reasons. The first is that I couldn’t seem to read my own handwriting after a while. I know this seems silly, but it was quiet a real thing to me. I would want to revisit a thought and could not due to not recognizing what I had written. The second reason, and probably the most important, was because a I bought a small laptop. Laptops, in previous years had been so large and unaffordable that I never imaged owning one. I eventually saved a bit of money and bought the very first 11-inch MacBook Air. It was a great improvement to my journaling experience in that I could revisit my thoughts. I was pleased with the laptop for a few years, but I was never one hundred percent satisfied.
My main frustrations were the very many distractions that a computer enabled. Emails would pop-up, people would text and want to Facetime spontaneously, and worst of all, the urge to surf the web was always present. The computer would almost always need an update or run out of battery while I was writing and then one day it died on me all together. Till today I’m unsure what went wrong with my MacBook air. I fought the urge to buy another MacBook as they had discontinued the 11-inch version in favor of the 13 inch that was too big for me. This was right about the time I was introduced to fountain pens. A friend of mine brought a Kaweco sport fountain pen into the office and I was hooked instantly, and they are singlehandedly the reason I began recording my thoughts in an analogue way again.
The Fountain Pen, Paper, and Ink Remedy:
Call me crazy but with the help of a fine nibbed fountain pen, I could read my handwriting again instantly. It was a miracle. I knew I didn’t want to write with another BIC pen or regular pencil again in my life and instead, I would make a fountain pen part of my life from that day forward (which was relatively recent. I think I came across this in 2018 or so). Since then, I have amassed a small collection of fountain pens varying in nib size. If I had to live the rest of my days with only one fountain pen it would be by far my Pilot Custom 823 in Transparent (this pen is not shown in the pictures below.). It is my “always have on me” pen and I use it exclusively for everything except when I’m writing correspondence or at my job, only because I don’t want someone to steal it. It’s such an excellent pen because of the 14k gold nib it has and its large ink capacity. Plus, it looks super sexy. That’s always a plus for me.
Pens: Montblanc 146, Montblanc 149 (x2), Pelikan M800 / Inks: Purdey and Sons Bourbon, Diamine Ancient Copper/ Journal: Bullet Journal Leuchturm 2nd Edition
Ink? After playing with this and that color for years I finally settled on two colors: the Ancient Copper from Diamine and the Purdey and Sons Bourbon from Montblanc. The Ancient Copper is my “go to” ink for daily writing no matter if it’s at work or elsewhere. If I’m writing letters (which I’m either doing one or the other) I use the Purdy and Sons Bourbon. I’ve bought a few of the later as they are a limited-edition ink and will eventually cease to be available.
Paper, you ask? It’s almost always one of two for me. In my professional life I use the Bullet Journals by Leuchturm. The one shown in the pictures here are the 2nd edition journals and they are absolutely awesome albeit very expensive at about $23 per book. You get about two-hundred pages in each book, and it looks sexy when used without a cover. I, however, do use a cover, a black one made of leather that I found in a stationary store with dust on it that even the owner forgot that he had available. I cleaned it off and now it’s part of my life and will be for some time. It has a pen holder which I insert my Montblanc 146 in and use it while I’m at my job.
For personal use, I use the Midori A5 journals that you can pick up in most stationary shops worth their salt. They are excellent journals, and they are made exclusively for use with fountain pens. They don’t break the bank at about $15 each. I know a lot of people who collage the front cover, but I do not. I use a leather book cover from Galen Leather company in Turkey which I modified to hold four pens on the outside of the cover. I usually only insert my Pilot custom 823 in there and my Pelikan M800. My Montblanc 149s are just too expensive to take out of my home. I always worry about losing them somewhere.
A closer look at my Crazy Horse Leather book cover which I purchased from Galen Leather in Turkey. I modified it to fit four pens on the outside of the book. The black leather book is a no name brand which I use for work.
To Conclude:
I can only tell you what works for me and how I cracked the code on journaling, especially when I travel. I can tell you that the writing experience when you are on the way or just sitting at home offers a great deal of possibilities. It has the power to help you deal with fleeting thoughts you may have as well as help you reflect on your thoughts. It can also help enhance your creativity if that’s what you are looking for. While fine writing instruments certainly make it more interesting you don’t need those to start. I can say that when you do start you will be glad that you did.